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Nuremberg Conference on Universal Values
Written by UPF - Germany
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Nuremberg, Germany - UPF-Nuremberg held its third annual conference on the topic “Universal Values – Paving the path to overcome religious and cultural Conflicts” on October 23. Twenty-six guests from Christian, Muslim, and Buddhist communities attended along with some 50 UPF members.
Christian Hausmann, the first speaker and President of UPF-Germany, spoke on the topic “A society searching – which values can guarantee a peaceful future?” He began with the question: “Do we, as a society, have a goal for our development?” Certainly, said Mr. Hausmann, there are plenty of political visions. These visions, however, are mostly based on a moral relativism and believe in a “constant change of values.” However, this “change of values” turns out to be a “loss of values.” Lasting vision cannot be based on a moral relativism but come from a reliable and permanent source. And while it is true that certain conflicts in the past and the present may have religious connotations, the biggest catastrophes of the twentieth century were caused by atheistic ideologies of people such as Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, Castro, Pol Pot, and Mao Tse-tung. The terrible heritage of atheism are 150 million murdered men, women, and children.
Religion, according to Hausmann, needs more orthopraxis, not only orthodoxy. Religion is more than just observing the “Golden Rule”:
- Evolution follows an intelligent design; we are the expression of a concrete origin and thus have a concrete and unalterable value;
- All of creation is based on a structure of polarity, which is manifested in male and female and spirit and body for human beings; the connecting point is the principle of give and take;
- Each human being passes through three stages of life: starting as an embryo, moving into physical life through birth; and entering the eternal spiritual world through physical death; the purpose of this life on earth is to prepare for the hereafter, which is beyond space and time;
- The family is the school of love, the only institution created by God;
- To create a world of interdependence, all boundaries need to be surpassed.
The next speaker was Christine Roehrborn from the Buddhist Society Bodhi-Baum on the subject “Universal Values from a Buddhist Perspective.” Universal values, according to Roehrborn, are values enabling the peaceful coexistence of all people on this planet. They include respecting life and rejecting violence, acknowledging other faith traditions, and adhering to ethical principles. Sympathy, benevolence, and patience are basic prerequisites for peaceful coexistence. She quoted from the book The Art of Happiness: “We can neglect much, such as religions, world views, ideologies, all wisdom and knowledge of the world. But we cannot neglect love and compassion. We don’t need temples, churches, mosques or synagogues, not complicated philosophies, doctrine or dogma. Our heart, our spirit is the temple. Compassion is the doctrine. Love for another and respect for his dignity and rights, no matter who he or she might be, is all we need. If we practice this in daily life, then it doesn’t matter, if we are educated or not, if we believe in Buddha or in God, if we belong to any religion at all.”
Concerning the universal desire of all people for happiness, she concluded with a remarkable word of wisdom: “All the suffering of the world stems from the desire to make oneself happy. All the happiness in the world stems from the desire to make others happy.”
Ender Eker from the Muslim community (Religion of Abraham Association) came next and spoke on “Universal values and conflict resolution.” It was his first time with UPF Nuremberg, and he lauded the “brotherly spirit” ruling the event. His first task was to point out the similarities among the three Abrahamic religions. They are monotheistic religions, each with its Holy Book: Torah, Bible, and Qur'an. They all have their major prophet, revelation, believe in God as the creator, and have Abraham as their original father. All three books have the same basic message, which does not talk about arguing and combating the other books but living in peace and brotherhood. Sura 42 of the Qur'an states: “The word, which we gave to Noah, to Abraham, to Moses and to Jesus, son of Mary, we also gave to you (Mohammad).” The three books may vary in word and sentence, but the message is the same.
We also have to look for the creator, which is of prime importance to get to know Him, according to Ender. I must have the firm desire to find my creator. In the Bible it is written: “Seek and you will find, knock at the door and it will be opened.” It is also written in Matt. 5:38-39: “You have heard that it was said: an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say unto you: do not resist those who do evil unto you, but if somebody hits your right cheek, offer him the other as well.” In Sura Ma’ida, verse 45 it says: “We wrote in the Torah that vengeance should be upon injury and we told them: an eye for an eye, tooth for tooth, life for life, nose for nose, ear for ear. But whoever forgives and forsakes his right of redemption, he will prosper.”
Dr. Koffi from the community Living Hope Christian Center spoke next on “A renewed mind.” In his view, enough words have been spoken, and it was time to act. Acting means to dismantle any prejudice induced by external appearance, such as clothing or color of the skin. Fellow people should be seen as what they are, our brothers and sisters, tied together through our common creator. In his experience, most conflicts originate from the question: Who is the better and who is best? As long as we continue to think we are better than the other, we cannot live in harmony. We can only leave this dilemma through spiritual renewal, extinguishing the old spirit and allowing a spiritual update. Religions are in danger of putting people into fetters, missing their main task, which is to look for God and love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Renewal of the spirit can happen in a single day, once we are capable of forgiving those who have wronged us. This is possible because God forgave us.
Dietmar Jorde, UPF-Nuremberg, was the last speaker. He quoted from the book “Marriage, Family and Eternal Life – Building Block for a Culture of Love” by Rev. and Mrs. Sun Myung Moon. Father Moon says: “Something I have practiced all my life is tearing down barriers. We must go beyond the differences of race, religion and nationality and live in peace together. We are all members of one world family, centered on God, living in brotherly love. This should not only be a slogan or mere word, but become our living reality. God has much hope in young people. We have to surpass our consciousness of belonging to a certain race, culture, nationality or language family.” More elements for establishing a peaceful society are listed in this book: the unity between spirit and body centering on God, respecting human rights, establishing true families, caring for public goods, and taking care of the environment.
At the end of the event all participants were treated to a delicious buffet-style dinner.
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